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Joakim Soria got the final two outs of Sunday's 3-0 win over the Reds, earning his first save as a member of the Pirates.

Soria took the mound after regular closer Mark Melancon was ejected for hitting Tucker Barnhart with a pitch, putting runners on first and second with one out. Soria got Eugenio Suarez to fly out, and Ivan De Jesus, Jr. to ground out to end the game. Soria's save situations should be very few and far between behind Melancon in the final two months.

Neil Walker hit a solo home run in a 1-for-4 effort on Sunday as the Pirates shut out the Reds.

Walker added some insurance with a solo home run off of Keyvius Sampson in the fourth inning. He reaches double-digits in home runs, something he's done now in six consecutive seasons. Along with the 10 round-trippers, he has knocked in 42 runs while batting .272/.328/.422.

Conforto was just sent back down to the minor leagues on Saturday to make room on the active roster for Yoenis Cespedes. The 22-year-old is hitting .211 (4-for-19) with no homers and three RBI through his first six games in the big leagues.

Adeiny Hechavarria ended Sunday's 5-2 win over the Padres with a walk-off three-run homer in the bottom of the ninth inning.

Padres reliever Brandon Maurer was his own worst enemy on Sunday, walking two in the ninth inning before serving up the three-run homer with one out. The homer was Hechavarria's fifth of the season. He's hitting .279/.311/.375 with the five taters and 42 RBI. Most of that production came in April and he's cooled off after a hot start.

Keyvius Sampson, making his first major league start, allowed three runs to the Reds in five innings and took the loss on Sunday.

Sampson is hoping to grab a spot in the rotation following the departures of Johnny Cueto and Mike Leake. The right-hander allowed three hits, walked one, and struck out six in a decent showing. He relented two runs on a Starling Marte double in the third inning, and Neil Walker took him yard in the fourth for a solo home run. Sampson's next match-up will come against the Diamondbacks in Arizona.

Lopez has been on fire lately, winning three of his last four with a 2.45 ERA. He's near the top of the league leaders in almost every pitching category including wins (second), strikeouts (third), ERA (fourth) and WHIP (fifth). The 22-year-old should be in line for a promotion in the very near future.

Lopez has been on fire lately, winning three of his last four with a 2.45 ERA. He's near the top of the league leaders in almost every pitching category including wins (second), strikeouts (third), ERA (fourth) and WHIP (fifth). The 22-year-old should be in line for a promotion in the very near future.